1. Hitchcock would be thrilled: The downtown of Sunnyvale, Calif., has been bustling since the coronavirus pandemic started. More than a thousand visitors have enjoyed a night on the town practically every evening for almost two years. But they do not come to slurp ramen or drink beer at the gastro pub. They eat whatever scraps they can find outside. Then they defecate all over the sidewalks. They are the unwelcome guests nobody invited: crows. And now the city is turning to an unlikely weapon to disperse them: lasers. The city authorities have struggled to get rid of the birds for at least the past five years, but the situation became dire during the pandemic, when the crow population mushroomed. (via The New York Times)
2. No doubt about it: Exactly two years ago I was trudging up the path to a bird reserve. “The Brant geese are here!” enthused the first fellow visitor I passed. “More snow geese are arriving!” announced the second person I ran into. “Jesus is coming!” proclaimed the third. Beat that, Mr Bird Watcher, I thought. Street preachers are rarely encountered at bird sanctuaries. But this was Jamaica Bay, New York City. I saw the geese but not The Redeemer that day. Urban reserves, parks and gardens are lively with migrants in January, amid the chill of the northern winter. New York was my last overseas visit. Coronavirus means humans have become distinctly non-migratory. Bunkered in our dwellings, we voyage via Zoom calls and Netflix dramas. Hanging out with winter migrants is a more satisfying way of travelling without leaving home turf. It opens the lungs and stills the nerves in ways binge watching cannot. You can get lost amid the swirling flocks and their unspoken travelers’ tales. (via Financial Times)
3. A bit concerning given the Bald Eagle’s remarkable recovery: Bald eagle populations have slowly recovered from near devastation after the government banned DDT in 1972, but another ongoing issue has weakened that rebound – lead poisoning from gunshot ammunition. A new study, published January 13 in the Journal of Wildlife Management, finds that despite increasing numbers of bald eagles, poisoning from eating dead carcasses or parts contaminated by lead shot has reduced population growth by 4% to 6% annually in the Northeast. The results could help educate and inform policy on ammunition choices for hunters, as copper-based ammunition exists though supplies of all ammunitions have been low lately. (via Cornell Chronicle)
4. Birds can help: For years, entomologists have worried about what appears to be a global decline in insect populations. But data on insect trends can be hard to come by. Scientists have studied relatively few of the some 900,000 living insect species they have named so far, and have yet to name millions more. Now, researchers say one of the bug world’s deadliest enemies—birds—could offer much-needed help in tracking insect numbers. That’s because studies of birds often contain substantial information about the insects they eat. Those bird-related data are pretty much missing from current studies of insect declines, says Chris Elphick, a conservation biologist at the University of Connecticut (UConn), Storrs, and a co-organizer of EntoGEM, a research effort launched in 2019 that is combing the scientific literature for insect data. (via Science)
5. If you happen to be in Tamil Nadu this weekend, look up: Pongal has long been associated with treats of jaggery and religious offerings. But in Tamil Nadu, the festive weekend also means watching out for sandpipers and mynas. From 13 January to 17 January every year, people take to the streets for a celebration that’s unique to the south—the Pongal Bird Count. What is the Pongal Bird Count? Around this time in January, a host of migratory birds travel to the southern states in search of a warm haven. They are seen flocking across the sky, over the wetlands and on the bannisters of every other household. In an attempt to track the migratory bird population, locals break routine to spend at least 15 minutes outdoors and share their observations on the online platform called eBird. (via Conde Nast Traveller)
6. Another reason owls are such cool birds: Trailing-edge noise is the dominant source of sound from aeronautical and turbine engines like those in airplanes, drones, and wind turbines. Suppressing this noise pollution is a major environmental goal for some urban areas. In Physics of Fluids, by AIP Publishing, researchers from Xi'an Jiaotong University used the characteristics of owl wings to inform airfoil design and significantly reduce the trailing-edge noise. "Nocturnal owls produce about 18 decibels less noise than other birds at similar flight speeds due to their unique wing configuration," said author Xiaomin Liu. "Moreover, when the owl catches prey, the shape of the wings is also constantly changing, so the study of the wing edge configuration during owl flight is of great significance." (via EurekaAlert)
7. And speaking of owls: Short-eared owls are a medium sized owl with large yellow eyes and thick, dark eyeliner around each eye that makes them look like they are wearing too much eye makeup. Very goth-like. Like other owls they have short necks and puffy heads. One thing that isn’t short on these owls are the wings. They have long broad wings which when they fly, they look like butterfly wings flapping. Unlike most of our owl species, short-ears are found throughout the world on all continents except Antarctica and Australia. They have one of the most widespread distributions of any bird, let alone an owl species. (via SW News Media)
8. Come on, Texas, help this very special bird: Texans have often rejected attempts by big government to interfere in their affairs. Now the fate of the golden-cheeked warbler has become the latest instance of Washington ruffling feathers in the independent-minded state. The distinctive bird, with a bright yellow face and bold black marks, is at the centre of a tussle between the federal government and developers keen to have it removed from the endangered species list. Doing so would allow building on the warbler’s habitat as demand for housing in central Texas surges. The latest lawsuit was filed last week but the federal government rejected survey findings that the population of the birds warranted a loosening of protections. (via The Times)
9. Another extraordinary long-distance migrant: Bog walking is a treacherous business. The bog, or muskeg, near Beluga, Alaska, is a floating mass of vegetation, grassy hummocks and stunted black spruce trees that stretch for miles in every direction, with the snow-flecked mountains of the Alaska Range shining in the distance. Few trails exist. A wrong step can sink the uninitiated into thigh-deep water that requires a hand up. This, however, is where one of the world’s premier ultra-endurance athletes lives. Migratory shorebirds make the most miraculous journeys of all, given the distances they cover and their tiny size. There are some 70 species of shorebirds in the world that make the journey from the top of the globe to the bottom and back every year. The Hudsonian godwit is one of them. (via Smithsonian Magazine)
10. And speaking of migrants, this from the British Trust for Ornithology: Britain is becoming a hotspot for feathered migrants as a result of rising temperatures and our fondness for feeding birds. Some now even head north in winter to visit us. A recent study shows blackcaps, perky passerines that visit suburban gardens, are breezing in from warmer Spain as well as chilly Germany. “The visitors to Britain get back to breeding grounds two to three weeks earlier and in better condition than rivals,” says Paul Stancliffe from the British Trust for Ornithology. (via BTO)
11. Remarkable: The Chernobyl Exclusion Zone has become a haven for a rare species of endangered eagles, a study has found. A study, published in the journal Restoration Ecology, found that although Greater Spotted Eagles were completely extinct in Western Europe before the nuclear disaster in 1986, they have now colonized the exclusion zone and increased in numbers. Following the Chernobyl disaster, an area covering approximately 1,000 square miles was cordoned off by authorities. For 35 years, the public has not been permitted inside the exclusion zone. Despite the radiation, rare and endangered animals have thrived in the Chernobyl exclusion zone because of the lack of human disturbance. Researchers are exploring the return of birds in the zone, and monitored the "rewilding" of the area over a 22 year period starting 12 years after the disaster. (via Newsweek)
12. “Birding is for everybody!” Right? It’s easy to think that everybody feels welcome and included in the birding community and the outdoors just because we say things like that. But sometimes it’s not enough to assume folks know they’re welcome; we must be intentional about it, too. There are concrete actions we can take—as individual birders, members of birding groups, and organizations—to ensure that everybody feels that they belong in the birding community. By being intentionally welcoming and inclusive, we’ll create environments that others will want to join and avoid inadvertently contributing to ones that feel exclusive. And that’s the first step to ensuring that birding truly is for everybody. (via Audubon)
13. The Eagle was landed: Bird News Items ventured north to the Boothbay Harbor area of Maine in search of the Steller’s Sea-Eagle last Saturday. This was BNI’s second effort – the first being a washout in southeastern Massachusetts in December. Leaving Boston at 5:30 am with temps hovering at 1 ͦ, and arriving at a recommended staging area (The Maine State Aquarium) on west Boothbay Harbor, we immediately checked the GroupMe app’s Maine Rare Bird Alert chat group. As luck would have it, not 3 minutes before, someone had posted the current location of the eagle. Entering the location into Google Maps, it turned out the bird was less than a mile away in a small cove. An absolutely magnificent bird, one of the largest eagles in the world, which seems to be enjoying its casual tour of North America (Alaska, Texas, Gaspe Peninsula, Massachusetts and now Maine). An eastern Siberian breeder who winters in Korea and Japan, the Steller’s Sea-Eagle has never before been seen in the lower 48 states – the ultimate rarity. Despite the frostbite conditions (5 ͦ and 20 mph guts), it was fun to find and a thrill to see - and also fun to meet birders from all over the U.S. who dropped everything to be here.
Bird Photo of the Week
Photo by Hap Ellis, Steller’s Sea-Eagle.
Bird Videos of the Week
By Bayou Josh, “Bird Photography Tips”.
Cornell Live Bird Cam - Cuckoo for Cuckoos.
Cornell Live Bird Cam -Acorn Woodpeckers.